Topic: sony vegas help

[Jimna]

ok, ive got my editing done and im ready to render the project.  when i do i render it as an mpeg2 file with the dvd ntsc template.  once its done and i try to watch the file its al glitchy.  the audio is ok, but the video is terrible.  what am i doing wrong?  im not running anything else when i render it or when i try to watch it.  any help?

[BayTaynt3d]

When you say "glitchy," what exactly is the problem? What does it look like. One thing that many folks don't realize is that when you render out to MPEG2 for DVD, it will be INTERLACED. And when you playback an interlaced video on a PROGRESSIVE-SCAN monitor (aka your computer monitor), it'll look like crap. But by crap I mean it'll have a whole lot of horizontal tearing/combing -- horizontal lines looking all weird. If that is what you see, just burn a dvd and watch it on your TV, it'll look fine. Also, if you have a slower/older computer, it may choke when trying to playback high bit rate mpeg2 -- by choke, I mean choppy with lots of dropped frames. If that is the case, just burn the DVD and play it, it'll be fine. Now, it may be something totally else, but when rendering, it's not like a burn or capture where you shouldn't "do anything" on the computer during the process, you can do anything you want while rendering as long as you don't crash.

[Jimna]

very informative, thanks.  i thought that it might just be my pc, but i also figured if it can play a dvd (which it can) then it should play the mpeg2 file as well.  so i guess ill just continue on in dvd achitect and finish it. 

thanks for the heads up on rendering.  ive been saving all my rendering for nights so the pc is left alone.  one more question,  when i choose my bit rate to render, what is the lowest rate i want to use and still have a quality recording?  i dont want to over kill it either, its not like my camera is top quailty.  i just want to maximize my space on each dvd with out ending up with a shitty video quality.

+t for the help.

[BayTaynt3d]

very informative, thanks.  i thought that it might just be my pc, but i also figured if it can play a dvd (which it can) then it should play the mpeg2 file as well.  so i guess ill just continue on in dvd achitect and finish it. 

thanks for the heads up on rendering.  ive been saving all my rendering for nights so the pc is left alone.  one more question,  when i choose my bit rate to render, what is the lowest rate i want to use and still have a quality recording?  i dont want to over kill it either, its not like my camera is top quailty.  i just want to maximize my space on each dvd with out ending up with a shitty video quality.

+t for the help.

Are you using DVD Architect in combo with Vegas? If so, you should just render out using the DVD Architect MPEG2 template and don't mess with it unless you know what you are doing. Basically, you shouldn't change the bit rate unless for some reason you have so much footage it can't fit on a single DVD. Then, maybe, just maybe, I'd mess with the bit rates. DVD's aren't like QT or WMV, some players will choke on customized bit rates, especially when you mess with the max/min and avg. bit rates in hard to encode ways. Anyway, that's just my 2 cents.

[Jimna]

what i want is to turn 3hrs( maybe 3hrs 20 min) of footage into a 2 disc set.  yes i'm working vegas>dvd achitect.  i thought i could fit 2 hrs of footage on a dvd?   

   this is obviously my first show on video, and has given me a new respect for these guys turning out quality show after quality show.  LOL

your 2 cents worth is equal to a crisp 20 dollar bill to me.......

[guitard]

Are you using DVD Architect in combo with Vegas? If so, you should just render out using the DVD Architect MPEG2 template and don't mess with it unless you know what you are doing. Basically, you shouldn't change the bit rate unless for some reason you have so much footage it can't fit on a single DVD. Then, maybe, just maybe, I'd mess with the bit rates. DVD's aren't like QT or WMV, some players will choke on customized bit rates, especially when you mess with the max/min and avg. bit rates in hard to encode ways. Anyway, that's just my 2 cents.

Vegas' DVDA template is min: 192,000 avg: 6,000,000 and max: 8,000,000 with a single pass VBR.

I prefer to use two-pass VBR, and I always use custom bitrates to max out the space on the DVD.  I'm not sure what you mean by "hard to encode ways."  I've Authored around 600 DVDs using the Vegas/DVDA combo - all with custom bitrates - and have never had a problem with the disks not playing properly.

I use a bitrate calculator like this one:  http://www.videohelp.com/calc.htm

After setting the time and the audio bitrate, I back off 300 on the calculated bitrate (to make room for menus - I almost always include two motion menus).  Typically the resulting project in DVDA comes out to 98%.  Sometimes it's a little higher - even over 100%.  But DVDA version 2 allows you to go over 100%, so it's not a problem.  I don't think version 3 will compile the DVD if it's over 100% though.

[Jimna]

Ok, ts.com (for the resource) and Tainted (for his insight) have beena great help to me this far.   +t

 I have rendered mpeg files that will ultimately fit on 2 dvds.  Now I find myself in dvd achitech and Im at a wall.  I created a still Menu with sub menus.  The sub menus I have created have media attached that also work from a button.  What i cant seem to figure out is how to make buttons that go to the chapter marks I have created in the media assigned to the menu.  To make the media work from a button,  I used the menu I get when I right click in the project and it offers a choice of adding media, but does not offer a button to assign to media.  How do I assign the chaptermarks to a button with a song title as a lable?  Ultimately I want to get to a menu that has a "setlist" of buttons that will navigate to that song and then keep playing from that point, also including a play all option/ button. 

Big thanks on the bitrate calculator.  When you do the calculaton, what is your scale for the average and minimum bitrate settings?  That is assuming that the calculated bitrate is the maximum bitrate setting.  by changing these settings it doubled my rendering times.  Is this normal?

Im having fun. Thanks for the help.

[guitard]

Big thanks on the bitrate calculator.  When you do the calculaton, what is your scale for the average and minimum bitrate settings?  That is assuming that the calculated bitrate is the maximum bitrate setting.  by changing these settings it doubled my rendering times.  Is this normal?

It depends to some extent on how powerful your processor is.  I have a very powerful work station set up for video work, so I've noticed a difference in rendering times.

If there is a lot of dark scenes in the DVD, you can very low with the minimum - I think the default is 192,000 - and that's fine.  If you don't have many dark scenes and there is a lot of (fairly constant) movement, you might as well bump it up to 2,000,000.  Of course, the key is the avg.  I would also click on the 2-pass VBR box.  That will definitely increase your render times, but it also lets Vegas look at your video twice to determine the best bit rate for each segment - which is always a good thing.

[guitard]

 I have rendered mpeg files that will ultimately fit on 2 dvds.  Now I find myself in dvd achitech and Im at a wall.  I created a still Menu with sub menus.  The sub menus I have created have media attached that also work from a button.  What i cant seem to figure out is how to make buttons that go to the chapter marks I have created in the media assigned to the menu.  To make the media work from a button,  I used the menu I get when I right click in the project and it offers a choice of adding media, but does not offer a button to assign to media.  How do I assign the chaptermarks to a button with a song title as a lable?  Ultimately I want to get to a menu that has a "setlist" of buttons that will navigate to that song and then keep playing from that point, also including a play all option/ button. 

If I understand the situation correctly:

1.  You set chapter markers in Vegas prior to encoding
2.  You've dropped your mpeg2 file into DVDA - and it's sitting on the main menu of your project.

If this is the case, just right click on the mpeg2 file (icon), and click on "insert scene selection menu" in the drop down menu.  A second icon will now appear on your main menu page.  Double click on it, and that will take you to the scene selection menu.

Get to know all the buttons on the menu design page of DVDA really well.  They will save you huge amounts of time - and they will help you to make some really nice looking menus.

If you haven't already done so, I highly recommend downloading the manual for DVDA from Sony's website, and that you also use Sony's forums located at http://www.sonymediasoftware.com/forums/default.asp.

If you did not set the chapter markers in Vegas, you have to do it in DVDA.  To do this, double click on the mpeg2 file on your main menu page - the video and audio will appear on a timeline at the bottom of the page.  You can't set the first chapter mark (at the very beginning of the video), so don't bother trying.  You can change the name from the default "chapter" later on when you get to your scene selection menu page.  Determine where you want the next chapter marker positioned, and then click on the "insert chapter" button.  If you don't know which one it is, hover the mouse over the various buttons and you'll see it. 

[Jimna]

ok, i figured out how to place the chapter marks and create a scene selection page.  my next problem seems to be with the media it self.  i have1.5mb of used disc space before i add it, and 5 gb after.  i looked at the file and it shows it only being 3.49 gb.  so whats this mean? 

i did use the bitrate calculator and then use that bitrate as the maximum setting, or should i have used that as the average setting?  i understand now what to do with the minimum setting, but this is all after the renderings were finished.  for my mpeg2 i rendered at:
Max: 5,100,000
average: 5,000,000
Min: 4,800,000
Also used 2 pass setting as well
the only reason im rehashing a old lesson here is because im wondering if my high minimum setting and questionable average setting are what is causing my media to show a larger size when added to my project in DVDA. 

i am so happy with how the project is turing out.  if i can just get it down to a size that will fit on the dvd i will be in buisness. 

[guitard]

ok, i figured out how to place the chapter marks and create a scene selection page.  my next problem seems to be with the media it self.  i have1.5mb of used disc space before i add it, and 5 gb after.  i looked at the file and it shows it only being 3.49 gb.  so whats this mean? 

i did use the bitrate calculator and then use that bitrate as the maximum setting, or should i have used that as the average setting?  i understand now what to do with the minimum setting, but this is all after the renderings were finished.  for my mpeg2 i rendered at:
Max: 5,100,000
average: 5,000,000
Min: 4,800,000
Also used 2 pass setting as well
the only reason im rehashing a old lesson here is because im wondering if my high minimum setting and questionable average setting are what is causing my media to show a larger size when added to my project in DVDA. 

i am so happy with how the project is turing out.  if i can just get it down to a size that will fit on the dvd i will be in buisness. 

You definitely want to increase the max bitrate to 8,000,000 or more - otherwise, the scenes with lots of action that need high bitrate won't look as nice.  The size of the encoded mpeg is ultimately determined by the average - so don't worry about how high you set the max rate.

You had 1.5 gigs of used space before you added anything?  That can't be right.  It should be next to nothing.  My guess is that something is getting counted twice.  Can you post screen shots of your DVDA project?  In particular, the one that shows the menu structure.

[Jimna]

No i only had 1.5 mb used before i added the mpeg file.  but after it went to 5gb?  the file shows its only 3.49gb when i check it in the directory it saved in.

im not sure how to post a screen pic, but i would be happy to if instructed how.

im re-rendering my mpegs now with the corrected bitrates.

[guitard]

No i only had 1.5 mb used before i added the mpeg file.  but after it went to 5gb?  the file shows its only 3.49gb when i check it in the directory it saved in.

Ah........ missed that ever important "mb" versus "gb" on the end.  Just the blank pages come out to 1.5 mbs, so that's why it shows that.

The only other thing I can think of is that the size of the video you loaded into DVDA is not standard, i.e., NTSC 720 X 480, so it isn't the same as the default settings in DVDA, so DVDA thinks it has to re-render to a different size - something that often causes the size of the video to increase.

I'm sure there are several ways of determining the actual frame size of the video.  I just drop the video into Womble MPEG Editor and get the specs that way.  You can also right click on it when it's in the Vegas timeline.  Find out the specs, and after you've dropped it into DVDA, click on "make dvd > prepare dvd > optimize" and compare the specs of the videos to DVDA's setting, and change accordingly if necessary.

[Jimna]

I opened both DVDA, Vegas, and the mpeg2 file in its directory.  I compared them all and found no difference in any setting or property.  DVDA still shows a file that is 3.49gb in its directory(and should be what Vegas rendered according to the average bitrate i entered) as a 5.5gb file when its added to my project.  I found in the optimizeDVD window a way to recompress the video files along w/ the menues.  My only fear is that this will over compress it and the quality will suffer by re-rendering it this way.  the window had a fader dial that lowered the mbps to 3.700 to fit on the disc.  Isnt this a low rate? 

What setting would cause this difference of size?  Do most mpeg2 files out of Vegas fit (according to the calculated bitrate used) right into DVDa and not need rerendering?  Im using 1 hr 50 mins of video on a disc.  This isnt excessive is it?  I have many dvds here with 2 hrs of video on a disc.( single layer of course) 

For now Im re-rendering the dvd as a finished project out of DVDA.  i guess ill just burn it, and compare.  unless anyone can enlighten me other wise. 

+t on the help so far.  You are all Jedi.